This invention relates to a method and apparatus for reflection mode imaging and more particularly, to such method and apparatus which can display a property within a volume by taking successive cuts through the volume at selected ranges with a selected range differential, while synchronously displaying the information on a display to display variations of said property. The results of two such scanners, may be combined stereoscopically.
In the prior art, the Ledley patent 4,271,706 employs an ultrasonic scanner with a mechanical scan and gates the range of the scanning signal, using varying degrees of grey to show three dimensions. Ledley only detects surfaces and not changes in a property inside a volume and does not employ a stereoscopic effect.
Koshikawa, et al. 3,918,025, employs a different form of range gate and displays different depths by using different colors to illustrate depth. Again, only surfaces are detected and displayed, and no stereoscopic effect is employed.
Three additional prior art patents Sollish 4,028,934, Bond, et al. 4,030,342, and Uranishi 4,240,295, disclose stereoscopic recombination and raster scanning but do not employ range gating to provide accurate three-dimensional or depth information.